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Published: March 13th 2007
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So as our adventure continues, we woke up early to get a full day or tourism. We started by having a great breakfast at our hotel, which consisted of Blueberry pancakes and an omelet. As my dad tried to figure out what Capsicum was (red or green peppers), we also faced the challenge of ordering a coffee. Coffee in Australia can be ordered in a multiple of fashions, and none similar in naming convention to the US. Your choices at a typical restaurant or coffee shop are;
short black,
long black,
flat white, cappuccino, macchiato, latte, ice coffee or a mugacino? Now I've been here for 2 weeks now, and I swear I've had at least 10 ice coffees. In Australia, iced coffee is a flavoured milk drink more similar to Gloria Jeans Mocha Chillas and Starbucks' Frappuccino in the United States as opposed to simply coffee that has been chilled or cold-brewed. Home made iced coffee is often served with ice cream and whipped cream and is often compared to a milk shake. They are excellent on a hot day, by the pool, and a quick pick me up to keep you going til bedtime.
After breakfast we ventured towards the Royal
The Sydney Library
I think they have some books inside. Botanical Gardens. The trees, flowers, and wildlife were amazing. As we walked through taking pictures, we wandered to an area that had quite a bit of ruckus. All of the sudden we noticed hundreds of fruit bats lining the trees above. Some flying from tree to tree, some just hanging in the breeze. These were also not the bats that I am used to seeing, being small and far away. These bats were 50 feet above our heads, and at least a foot in height. After 30 minutes of this amazement, we moved on towards some ponds with some nice flowers. Further down the gardens, we started walking along the harbour and towards the best known Australian landmark, the Sydney Opera House. We signed up for a 1 hour guided tour and were not disappointed. The guide was very knowledgeable in the history of the opera house, the size, and even who had performed there. At one point in the main theater, he asked for volunteers in the group if anyone wanted to sign. A woman gladly got up and went down 5 rows in front of us and sang a beautiful Celtic tune. Now she can say she's performed
BATS!!!!
We saw a few. at the famous Sydney Opera house. 😊
We then proceeded to find lunch, and found lovely little spot in Circular Quay(pronounced key). After some flathead fish and chips, we jumped on the ferry and saw a little of the landmarks from the water view. The Harbour Bridge, Sydney Opera House, Luna Park, and Darling Harbour where just a few of the wonderful sights we saw. As the ferry came up to the last pier, we got off and proceeded to find the Powerhouse Museum, which we had hear was the best museum in Sydney. Unfortunately, we didn't read too much about it and go there 20 minutes before it closed. So we sped through and saw as much of the history, hands on science exhibits, and accomplishments of Australia as we could. We then walked out to the neighboring Sydney's Paddy Marketplace, a large building consisting of cheap purses, tshirts, food, and jewelery. Across the street, we happened upon Chinatown, and had some ice cream under the shade. We walked up further towards our hotel, as we'd had a long day of walking. As we wandered back home, we noticed the streets getting more and more packed with people.
As we remembered seeing some signs, Sydney's big Mardi Gras Parade was happening tonight and they were holding it just 2 blocks away. So we had a quick water at our hotel, and headed out to see the festivities.
Now everyone in the US has their image of Mardi Gras, with New Orleans, and beads, and floats. Well let me tell you what Sydney's parade is like. It's also known as the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade. I know many of you reading this will want to see pictures, sorry to disappoint you Jay, but I didn't take any of interest. 😊 After a quick 15 minutes of this enormous parade with over 300,000 people spectating, we headed off to the local Casino.
Star City is an smaller version of a Las Vegas Casino, with a theater, 14 restaurants, and night club. The tables were surprisingly highly priced with Roulette tables at $5 a chip and all the way up to $25 a chip. The games were pretty much the same, and had very few Video Poker machines. After I won $35 dollars showing my dad how to play Roulette, we had a nice Thai dinner and
Bat Flying
Very graceful creatures, just don't suck my blood. then headed off to bed.
Wollongong, Thirroul, and Austinmer Today we got up and had our usual breakfast, coffee, and jumped on a train to head south to see my dad's old college friends. We mistakenly took a wrong train and had to stay 45 minutes extra in Waterfall Train station, but eventually got where we were going. Leon met us at the train station and instantly I knew I was going to like him. Very animated Australian who cursed like a sailor. We headed off to his house where his wife, Barbara, was making a lovely lunch for us. After a buffet of foods and a lovely view from their house, we headed off to see the sights of the area. We saw parks where hang-gliders launched from, rock ledges next to the ocean where people sat in pools of waves, and a wonderful view of Wollongong from the top of Mt. Keira. Parched, we had some quick beers at the Five Islands brewery on the water and then headed off to the train station back to Sydney. Hungry at 10PM, we wandered around and found a quick little kebab place and then proceeded to sleep well
Lily Pads
In the Botanical Gardens. so we could get up and head out to the Western coast and Perth.
Next: Perth and Western Australia
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Cara
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Wow!
Awesome pics!! Can't wait to see more!